Controversial Arizona Wildcats Advance Without Proof of Worth

One week removed from the NCAA tournament selection show, three things are apparent. First, there is no true Cinderella dancing at this year’s ball, with the clock quickly striking midnight for Siena, Western Kentucky, Dayton, and Cleveland State.

Also, both the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds have remained true to selection, all advancing, despite struggles and bumps here and there. And finally, the Arizona Wildcats have proven their worth…according to some.

A trip to the Sweet 16 brings some silence to critics believing the Wildcats didn’t belong in the field of 65, while also giving the selection committee a look of genius.

But staring at the road traveled to reach the next level, I fail to find evidence of anything related to a “rightful” selection. If anything, the path proves that they’ve benefited greatly by their position in the bracket.

Arizona appeared to be a lock for the NIT,  after finishing  .500 in the Pac 10, and likely pushed beneath the bubble, with  USC winning the conference tournament. Instead, they continue to represent the final at-large bid for the NCAA tournament, which is where criticism was drawn.

Did the committee cater to the Arizona streak of tournament appearances or find worth in their play? After two rounds of the NCAA tournament are complete, the Wildcats are the last of six Pac-10 programs still standing. Does this end the criticism and support the selection process? I’d say not.

California was the only Pac-10 team to lose in the first round, with the others unable to advance in round two. But if you rearrange the brackets and locations, placing others on the same path as the Wildcats, how many would still be alive and participating in the Sweet 16?

USC drew Boston College and Michigan State. For UCLA, it was VCU and Villanova. Arizona State faced Temple and Syracuse, and Washington bumped heads with Mississippi State and Purdue. How many of those teams would be advancing, had they drawn Utah and Cleveland State in opening rounds, as the Wildcats did?

How many teams outside of the Pac-10 would have also advanced, with the Utes and Vikings providing the lone bumps in the road?

Arizona now moves forward to meet Louisville,  the top overall seed,  and a victory over the Cardinals would finally bring a hush over me. But until then, I can’t roll on that bandwagon of flip-floppers and their sudden change of opinion, based on the two unimpressive victories.

If either Utah or Cleveland State advanced to the round of 16, they would be called the Cinderellas of the tournament field. And if this is so, how is shattering two glass slippers a display of worth? Think about it.

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